Fax confirmation device

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for placing an indelible mark on each page of a document which has been sent by FAX. The sender&#39;s FAX machine applies a clear/transparent chemical or ink message on the surface of the document which contains information such as the FAX machine identification number, telephone number of the FAX recipient, and the time and date of the FAX transmission. The information is printed and is invisible to the naked eye, but becomes visible underneath a low voltage UV light. The light is placed above the tray in which completed faxes are temporarily stored to make the mark visible to the operator to assure that each page of the document was separately sent. A separate pen light allows a sender or management person to confirm that a document has been properly and completely transmitted. Visible ink may be used if desired.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Serial No. 60/308,613, filed Jul. 31, 2001.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus to employa marking system to documents which is either visible to the naked eyeunder normal illumination, or invisible to the naked eye under normalillumination but readable under a specified illumination source, and,more particularly, a marking system to confirm that a document has beencompletely sent by facsimile (FAX) machine to a particular receiver at aparticular time and date.

[0004] 2. Description of Related Art

[0005] In the use of Facsimile(FAX) machines, it has been a problemwithin an office environment to confirm that a document has, indeed,been sent to the intended recipient. This is particularly true whenanother person is assigned the task and must also perform other tasks orFAX other documents, thereby dividing that person's attention from theparticular task that may require confirmation. It is, also, inherent inFAX machine feeders or during hand feeding a document of multiple pagesthat two or more pages are processed together one or more timesresulting in an incomplete document received by the FAX receiver. Noprevious satisfactory method or device is available with the specificpurpose of confirming that a particular document has been sent in itsentirety. In addition no such device exists which operates withoutdefacing the document which is undesirable in the case of legaldocuments.

[0006] U.S. Pat. No. 5,212,558, issued on May. 18, 1993, to Obata, etal. describes a system which employs invisible ink to a receiving FAXmachine document output to assure secure transmission only to theintended user who has a reader device operating under select lightcharacteristics, enabling that user to read the information thereon. Noprovision is in the '558 patent is made for confirming the FAX has beencompletely sent from the sending machine.

[0007] U.S. Pat. No. 4,504,084, issued on Mar. 12, 1985, to Jauchdescribes an invisible marking system using a reading system whichoperates outside the visible spectrum. The '084 system is primarilydesigned for marking documents such as currency, securities, andidentification cards. No mention is made of using this reading techniquefor the purpose of confirming that a FAX has been completely sent from asending machine.

[0008] U.S. Pat. No. 5,837,042, issued on Nov. 17, 1998 to Lent et al.describes various formulations of invisible ink usable by an ink jetprinter which are readable only upon exposure to ultra violet light. Nomention is made of using this marking or reading technique for thepurpose of confirming that a FAX has been completely sent from a sendingmachine.

[0009] None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly orin combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The present invention provides a technique for readily markingdocuments as they are sent by a FAX machine to confirm the sending, thetime, date, machine identification number, recipient's FAX telephonenumber or other desired information. This may be done by employingvisible marking of the document or invisible marking without visiblydefacing the document. This is useful to the sender to assure thecomplete message has been sent when desired, even if it is several pagesin length, and may be useful in legally establishing that the documenthas been sent by FAX in a subsequent legal proceeding.

[0011] Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to providea marking system which marks each page of a document as it is being sentby FAX with information as desired either visibly or invisibly withoutvisibly defacing the document.

[0012] It is another object of the invention to provide a marking systemwhich marks each page of a document being sent by FAX as above so thesender can confirm that each page of a document has been sent.

[0013] It is a further object of the invention to provide a markingsystem which marks each page of a document being sent by FAX as abovewith time sent, date, receiving telephone number, machine number, andany other desired information.

[0014] Still another object of the invention is to provide a markingsystem which marks each page of a document sent by FAX as above whereinthe marking is of invisible ink which can be read only with a discreetsource of light, but is invisible in the ordinary light spectrum.

[0015] Yet another object of the invention is to provide a markingsystem which marks each page of a document sent by FAX wherein suchmarkings are useful for establishing dates and procedures used forpurposes of legal confirmation that a document was, indeed, sent by FAXto the appropriate recipient.

[0016] It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements andarrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which isinexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing itsintended purposes.

[0017] These and other objects of the present invention will becomereadily apparent upon further review of the following specification anddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018]FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a fax confirmationdevice according to the present invention.

[0019]FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a the method of using of the inventivedevice according to FIG. 1.

[0020]FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic view if the device of the presentinvention having the added capability to confirm each page is processedat the FAX machine.

[0021]FIGS. 4A and 4B diagrammatically depict a complete FAX sending andreceiving system for reference purposes.

[0022]FIGS. 5A and 5B are a diagrammatic view of the inventive FAXconfirmation apparatus of the present invention.

[0023]FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic view of the confirming FAX machine ofFIG. 1 having a side wall broken away.

[0024] Similar reference characters denote corresponding featuresconsistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] The present invention relates to FAX machines. More specifically,the invention is a method and apparatus for placing an indelible mark,on each page of a document which has been sent by FAX. This mark isplaced on the face of each faxed document. The mark may be made withvisible ink or, alternatively, with invisible ink(ink not normallyvisible to the naked eye).

[0026] Marking with invisible ink may be used when it is desired toapply markings without damage or ill effect to the original. Theinvisible markings are plainly revealed under proper lighting such aslow voltage UV light. The sender's FAX machine applies aclear/transparent chemical or ink message on the surface of the documentwhich contains information such as the FAX machine identificationnumber, telephone number of the FAX recipient, and the time and date ofthe FAX transmission. The information is printed and is invisible to thenaked eye, but becomes visible underneath a low voltage UV light. A lowvoltage UV light may be placed above the tray in which completed faxesare temporarily stored to make the mark visible to the operator toassure that each page of the document was separately sent, therebydetermining that the document feeder of the machine has not sentmultiple pages through the machine at once and thereby failing to sendthe complete document. A separate pen light may be used to allow asender or management person to confirm that a document has been properlyand completely transmitted. With the invisible mark, the document can beused as an original. The document can be re-transmitted to multiplerecipients and a corresponding mark applied each time the document isfaxed. This device is useful for all industries including law firms,banks, and governments, etc.

[0027] The usage of the inventive device insures increased accuracy indocument transmission and document filing. Using the invisible marktechnology in a FAX machine will eliminate mistakes such as faxing thedocument more than once to the same receiver and failing to fax thecomplete document The marking will help avoid disputes by serving asproof as to whether a particular document was faxed to a particularreceiver at a certain time.

[0028] The invention may be used as a regular FAX machine and does notslow the transmission process or affect the received document.

[0029] Referring to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a FAX confirmationdevice 10 having FAX machine 12 with telephonic device 14. FAX machine12 has a casing 16, a FAX input tray 18 and a FAX output tray 20 for adocument A being sent by FAX. The confirmation device of the presentinvention includes ink jet printer 22 having track or carriage mountedink jet printer head 24 with printer feeding roller 26. The ink jetprinter head 24 may contain visible ink such as black ink or invisibleink as desired. The printer head 24 is easily substitutable such thatthe desired ink is used. The confirmation printer 22 is shown externalto casing 16, for illustration purposes, but may be located withincasing 16.

[0030] Referring to FIG. 2, there is presented a flow diagramillustrating the operation of the inventive FAX confirmation device.Document A is subjected to paper feed step 32. A telephone callinitiation step 34 is taken, followed by a wait period condition 36 toreceive an answer and standard FAX signal. If no signal is detected, ano signal step 38 reactivates telephone call initiation step 34. If asignal is detected, a confirmation signal step 40 is initiated followedby a document transmission step 42. Upon the end of condition 44 beingreached, the inventive print confirmation step 46 is taken, followed bytelephone hang up 48 and exit from the FAX operation 50.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 3, telephone set 14 is shown displayinginformation such as the time, date and telephone number of the FAX. Thistype of device is commonly available on standard FAX machine displays,either on the telephone or elsewhere such as on the machine casing. Inthis embodiment, the time, date and number information is sent to aprinter controller 54 by electrical signal conduit 56. The printercontroller 54 then controls printer 22 in FAX machine 12, by electricalsignal conduit 58. Printer 22 then controls printer head 24. Printer 22prints desired information, including machine number, on the documentA(see FIG. 1) in visible or invisible ink as desired. The details ofconstruction of the printer controller 54 and printer 22 are well knownin the art or obvious to the skilled artisan. To substantially reducethe chance of reprinting over a previous mark on a document that hasbeen previously faxed, the printer controller 54 may be programmed toscroll the printer carriage down a line at a time for each page faxeduntil programmed to return to the top of the page.

[0032] Referring to FIG. 4A and 4B is a diagrammatic view of a completeFAX sending and receiving system 100 for reference purposes, whereindocument B is scanned in scanning area 92 and the digital information isstored in RAM storage 94 and sent to data modem 104 (FIG. 4B). Referringto FIG. 4B, digital data 102 from RAM storage is sent to transmittingmodem 104 having a digital to analog converter and a tone encoder.Analog signals 106 are sent over telephone line 108, to receiving modem110 having a tone decoder and an analog to digital converter. Digitaldata 112 is sent from receiving modem 110 to RAM storage for printout.

[0033] Referring to FIG. 5A, there is shown a diagrammatic view ofanother embodiment 120 of the inventive FAX confirmation apparatus ofthe present invention wherein the invisible confirmation message may beread at the paper outlet tray. Document A is fed from the scanningdevice by feed roller 122 to confirmation print head 126. In thisembodiment the confirmation message is printed through a thermal processby print head 126. Document A, having an invisible confirmation messageprinted thereon is then carried to exiting roller 128 and finally topaper tray 132 where low voltage UV light 130 is conveniently placed,allowing the operator to read the confirmation message on the document Aas it enters the tray 132. Visible ink may be used in this embodiment asdesired.

[0034] Referring to FIG. 5B, there is shown an exterior view of theembodiment of FIG. 5A wherein a low voltage UV lamp 130 is mounted onFAX machine 12 at a location above tray 20 (see FIG. 1).

[0035] Referring to FIG. 6, there is a shown diagrammatic view of theconfirming FAX machine of FIG. 5A having a side wall broken away.Document A is placed in tray 142 where it is carried into the sendingsection 141 by feed rollers 144 to scanner 146 feed roller 122 andconfirmation message printer head 126 opposite paper train roller 124,and lastly into paper tray 132 exposed to low voltage UV light 130. Thereceiving section 150 receives blank paper C which is fed by feed roller152 to printer 154 where the received FAX information is printed. Thedocument C is then sent by outlet feed rollers 156 to document papertray 158. The printer head 126 is controlled by a printer controller(notshown) as in the system of FIG. 3. The printer controller may beprogrammed to sequentially skip printing lines as in the embodiment ofFIGS. 1 and 3 to help avoid reprinting over a line on a documentpreviously faxed.

[0036] In operation of the print confirmation device of FIG. 5A and FIG.6, the paper feed in the print engine consists of a motor and rubberrollers 122. The motor(not shown) turns the rollers, which inches thepaper through. Unlike the printing process of the FAX received document,the confirmation message is printed through a thermal process. Insteadof the printer head directly heating sensitized paper, the printer headmelts an ink ribbon, which in turn imparts color (invisible to the nakedeye) to the paper. The document is fed into the print engine where apressing roller 124, known as a paper train, presses the document Aagainst a ribbon coated with visible or invisible ink as desired. Afterthe paper passes through the paper train, the printer head 126 on theother side of the ribbon is turned on and melts small dots of the ink.The melted dots are pressed against the document. The paper trainreleases the document and it continues moving through until it isejected. Once the document exits the print engine, a low voltage UVlight 130 illuminates the printed image.

[0037] Invisible luminescent inks useful with the present inventioninclude Beaver Luminescers® Beaver Working Ink Nos. 3 and 6, from BeaverLuminescers, Newton, Mass., USA.

[0038] It is to be understood that the present invention is not limitedto the sole embodiments described above, but encompasses any and allembodiments within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:
 1. A confirming FAX machine comprising: a) means for scanningeach page of a document and sending the information scannedelectronically to a receiving FAX machine; and b) means for marking eachpage of a document scanned and sent by said FAX machine with an inkmessage.
 2. The confirming FAX machine of claim 1, wherein said inkmessage is printed with an invisible ink which is only visible in the UVspectrum; and further comprising means for reading said marking toconfirm the sending of said each page of said document.
 3. Theconfirming FAX machine of claim 2, wherein said means for reading saidmarking is a low power UV pen light.
 4. The confirming FAX machine ofclaim 2, wherein said FAX machine comprises a document output tray forreceiving said each page of said document sent, said confirmation devicefurther comprising a low power UV light so mounted on said FAX machineas to illuminate said marking on each said page of said document as itenters said document tray.
 5. The confirming FAX machine of claim 1,wherein said marking means is a printer for marking data, such as date,time the FAX is sent, and telephone number to which the FAX is sent. 6.The confirming FAX machine of claim 5, further comprising a printercontroller for receiving electrical signals representing time, date, andFAX number from said FAX machine and controls said printer by sendingcorresponding electrical control signals to said printer.
 7. Theconfirming FAX machine of claim 6, wherein said printer controller isprogrammed to scroll the carriage of said printer down a line at a timefor each page faxed until programmed to return to the top of a page,whereby the chances of overwriting a confirmation marking made whenpreviously FAXED is significantly reduced.
 8. The confirming FAX machineof claim 7, wherein said printer is an ink jet printer.
 9. Theconfirming FAX machine of claim 7, wherein said printer is a thermalprocess printer.
 10. The confirming FAX machine of claim 9, wherein saidthermal process printer comprises a print engine, having a pressingroller which presses the document against a ribbon coated with invisibleink, and a printer head on the opposite side of the ribbon and documentwhich melts small dots of the ink which are pressed against the documentto form said markings.
 11. A method of confirming the scanning andsending of each page of a document by a FAX machine comprising the stepsof: a) scanning and sending said page of each document by said FAXmachine; and b) marking each said page of said document with ink. 12.The method of claim 11, wherein said ink is only visible in the UVrange.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step ofreading each marking under a UV lamp to confirm that said page wasscanned and sent.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein said mark includesthe time, the date and the FAX number to which the document is sent. 15.A FAX confirmation device comprising means for marking each page of adocument scanned and sent by said FAX machine with an ink message, saidFAX confirmation device being adapted for attachment with a FAX machineat a point past the output of the scanner of said FAX machine.
 16. TheFAX confirmation device of claim 15, wherein said ink message is printedwith an invisible ink which is only visible in the UV spectrum; andfurther comprising means for reading said marking to confirm the sendingof said each page of said document.
 17. The confirming FAX machine ofclaim 16, wherein said means for reading said marking is a low power UVpen light.
 18. The confirming FAX machine of claim 16, wherein said FAXmachine comprises a document output tray for receiving said each page ofsaid document sent, said confirmation device further comprising a lowpower UV light so mounted on said FAX machine as to illuminate saidmarking on each said page of said document as it enters said documenttray.
 19. The confirming FAX machine of claim 15, wherein said markingmeans is a printer for marking data, such as date, time the FAX is sent,an d telephone number to which the FAX is sent.
 20. The confirming FAXmachine of claim 5, further comprising a printer controller forreceiving electrical signals representing time, date, and FAX numberfrom said FAX machine and controlling said printer by sendingcorresponding electrical control signals to said printer.